Method for machining at least one electrical enclosure

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a method for machining at least one switchgear cabinet including:
         providing at least one switchgear cabinet which is constructed in several parts and comprises at least one detachably mounted component;   disassembling and removing the detachably mounted component from the switch cabinet;   machining the disassembled and removed component and providing the machined component for reassembly on the associated switch cabinet; and   re-assigning the machined component provided for reassembly to the corresponding control cabinet,
 
wherein the at least one switch cabinet has an individual machine-readable switch cabinet identification and the at least one removably mounted component has an individual machine-readable component identification, which are assigned to one another, wherein re-assigning the component to the switch cabinet comprising machine-reading of the machine-readable identifications and bringing together the component and the switch cabinet which have the mutually assigned identifications.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a 371 U.S. National Phase of InternationalApplication No. PCT/DE2019/100274, filed on Mar. 22, 2019, which claimsthe benefit of German Application No. 10 2018 109 606.2, filed on Apr.20, 2018. The entire disclosures of the above applications areincorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

This section provides background information related to the presentdisclosure which is not necessarily prior art.

Technical Field

The invention relates to a method for machining at least one switchcabinet. The method comprises providing of at least one switchgearcabinet which is constructed in several parts and has at least onedetachably mounted component. For example, an electrical cabinet usuallyhas an electrical cabinet frame with flat panels attached thereto, forexample side walls, a door element, a roof element, and a mounting platemounted in the electrical cabinet. The flat panels and the mountingplate are usually detachably connected to the frame, e.g. by screwconnections, whereby the frame forms the supporting structure of theswitch cabinet. Such a switch cabinet, consisting of a frame, flatpanels attached to it and a mounting plate mounted inside the switchcabinet, is a common high volume product of a switch cabinetmanufacturer.

Discussion

Switch cabinets are used to accommodate switchgear, which can bedesigned very differently depending on the application and can thereforealso have different requirements for the structure of the switchcabinet. For example, depending on the type of switchgear, theswitchgear must be cooled. For this purpose, for example, an openingmust be formed in a side wall of the switchgear cabinet housing throughwhich a cooling unit mounted on or in the side wall draws heated airfrom the switchgear cabinet housing and blows it back into theswitchgear cabinet housing as cooled air. If the switch cabinet is to beused in a data center, for example, it may be intended that the switchcabinet is to be placed in a row of switch cabinets of the same type,whereby the switch cabinets of the row are not only mechanicallyconnected to each other, but also often form a continuous assembly spacethat spans several switch cabinets and is used for the arrangement ofserver racks and the like, for example. For example, it is commonpractice that a power supply for the switchgear cabinet row is providedvia a continuous busbar arrangement that extends through all theswitchgear cabinets of the switchgear cabinet row in order to provide apower supply for the electrical and/or electronic components of anelectrical switchgear system that are accommodated in the respectiveswitch cabinets. Although an IT-infrastructure is not an electricalswitchgear according to the linguistic usage, it shall be covered by theterm electrical switchgear in order to simplify the representation ofthe invention.

As a consequence, the switchgear cabinet provided by the switchgearcabinet manufacturer as a standard product has to be subjected to aconsiderable individualization until its actual use by the end user, andthis concerns both the mechanical condition of the switchgear cabinetand the switchgear incorporated in the switchgear cabinet. This has ledto the fact that in the value-added chain between the switch cabinetmanufacturer and the end user of the switch cabinet housing, for examplea machine builder, who controls a machine with the help of theswitchgear accommodated in the switch cabinet, a branch of industry hasformed around the switch cabinet construction, which is specialized inobtaining standardized series switch cabinets from the switch cabinetmanufacturer, equipping them with the switchgear required by the endcustomer and thereby individualizing the switch cabinet to the extentrequired in each case by mechanical, mostly machining finishing.

This individualization is often associated with the fact that the atleast one removable and post-processed component of the switch cabinet,for example a flat panel or a mounting plate, is disassembled from theswitch cabinet, preferably from the switch cabinet frame, and removedfrom the switch cabinet in order to feed the component to a machiningstation for individualization, for example to make openings or threadedpassages in the flat panel or mounting plate.

The mounting plate is also removed from the switchgear cabinet forequipping the mounting plate with the switchgear and is manually orautomatically provided with the electrical and/or electronic componentsof the electrical switchgear, including wiring of the components andfunctional testing of the switchgear. Thus at least one machining stepof the detachably mounted component takes place when it has beendisassembled and removed from the switch cabinet. The processedcomponent is then made available for reassembly on the associatedswitchgear cabinet. In order to enable a reassignment of the processedcomponent provided for reassembly exactly to the corresponding switchcabinet, it has been common practice so far to temporarily mark theremovable components and the switch cabinet, e.g. by means of manuallyapplied markings. This is accordingly cumbersome and error-prone.

SUMMARY

This section provides a general summary of the disclosure, and is not acomprehensive disclosure of its full scope or all of its features.

It is therefore one aspect of the invention to provide a method for themachining of at least one switch cabinet which is easy to perform andnot prone to errors.

Accordingly, it is provided that the at least one switch cabinet has anindividual machine-readable switch cabinet identification and the atleast one removably mounted component has an individual machine-readablecomponent identification which are assigned to each other, wherein there-assignment of the component to the switch cabinet comprises themachine-reading of the machine-readable identifications and the bringingtogether of the component and the switch cabinet which have the mutuallyassigned identifications.

For example, at least two identical switch cabinets can be providedduring provision, for example two switch cabinets that correspond to thestandard product of a specific article number of a switch cabinetmanufacturer. The two switch cabinets will therefore not differ fromeach other in their characteristics. In particular, the two switchcabinets may have a switch cabinet frame with flat panels fixed to it.The frames of the two switch cabinets, as well as the mounting platesand flat panels will therefore not differ from each other. At least oneof the aforementioned detachably mounted components of the switchgearcabinet may have the switchgear cabinet identification, if necessary inaddition to a component identification, if the component having theswitchgear cabinet identification is a component detachably mounted onthe switchgear cabinet, for example a flat panel, such as the switchgearcabinet door. Thus, each of the two series switch cabinets supplied bythe switch cabinet manufacturer may have a component which has at leastthe switch cabinet identification. At least one component of the othercomponents detachably mounted on the respective switch cabinet can havea component identification which is assigned to the respective switchcabinet identification.

It may also be provided that a frame of the respective switch cabinetdoes not have a component identification, since the frame is notprocessed and therefore, in case of a plurality of switch cabinets, anindividual assignment of a certain frame to a certain switch cabinet,i.e. a certain switch cabinet identification, is not necessary. Forconsistency reasons, however, it is conceivable that the switch cabinetframe also has a component identification that is assigned to the switchcabinet identification.

The component of the switch cabinet which has the switch cabinetidentification, to which the different removable mounted components ofthe switch cabinet are assigned by their respective componentidentification, thus has the function of a reference component or amaster component of a certain switch cabinet, to which certain furtherremovable mounted components of the certain switch cabinet are assignedby their respective component identification.

In this way it is possible that in the case of several identicalswitchgear cabinets, after dismantling the removably mounted componentsand, if necessary, after machining at least one of the disassembledcomponents, those components which were originally provided before thereworking are reassembled at the same switchgear cabinet. Especially inthe case of highly individually reworked switchgear cabinet components,such as flat panels of the switchgear cabinet, the previously describedassignment ensures that after the machining of the disassembledcomponents and the re-assignment of the processed components to thecorresponding switchgear cabinet, exactly the components that formed theswitchgear cabinet before the disassembly are actually reassembled.

Providing of the at least one switchgear cabinet can include themanufacturing of the switchgear cabinet, whereby during themanufacturing of the switchgear cabinet the removably mounted componentof the switchgear cabinet with the component identification and the atleast one further component of the switchgear cabinet with theswitchgear cabinet identification are manufactured independently of eachother and after their manufacture are assigned to each other for thefirst time by reading in the identifications.

The provision or the disassembly and removal of the removably mountedcomponent of the switch cabinet may involve the generation of a firstdata set describing a target machining state of the component, the firstdata set being assigned to the component via the componentidentification, and the storage of the first data set for remote access.

In this way, it is also possible, for example, for the switchgearcabinet manufacturer to carry out individualization measures on theseries product as early as the switchgear cabinet production stage, suchas forming cut-outs in flat panels or in the mounting plate.

It is possible that the first data set describing the target machiningstate of the component is already transmitted to the switch cabinetmanufacturer before the switch cabinet is manufactured, or during thisprocess, for example by a switch cabinet manufacturer. Similarly, thetarget machining state can be transmitted in the form of a CAD designfrom the panel builder to the switch cabinet manufacturer, who generatesthe first data set from it and assigns it to the componentidentification of the component during the manufacture of the detachablymounted component. It may also be provided, for example, that a panelbuilder transmits a CAD design to the switchgear cabinet manufacturerwhich concerns at least the mechanical reworking of the seriesswitchgear cabinet, for example the formation of at least one opening inat least one flat panel of the switchgear cabinet. The switchgearcabinet manufacturer can then generate from the CAD design relating tothe post-processing of the switchgear cabinet a first data set for eachof the components of the switchgear cabinet affected by thepost-processing, or a common data set describing the target machiningstate of the component concerned, the respective first data set thenbeing assigned to the respective component by means of the respectivecomponent identification, for example as soon as the respectivecomponent concerned has been manufactured in the raw production of thecomponents of the switchgear cabinet and has been provided with thecomponent identification individually identifying the component. It isthus possible that already in the earliest possible manufacturingprocess of the switch cabinet the individual components of the switchcabinet are assigned the information concerning the post-processing ofthe respective component via the link with the component identification.The control cabinet component can thus already be highly individualizedin the raw production process, even if only by assigning a data setrelating to the component to the component.

It is possible, for example, that the components of the control cabinetto be reworked compared to the series product may undergo individualreworking before they are first assembled to form a control cabinet, sothat the control cabinet product delivered by the control cabinetmanufacturer to the switchgear manufacturer exhibits a certain degree ofindividualization compared to the series product, for example in theform of cut-outs in flat panels.

But even in series production, the identification of the switch cabinetand the at least one removable component in accordance with theinvention can have advantages, for example by specifying at least onemanufacturing step relating to the component via the data set assignedto the component identification, for example an intended painting of thecomponent, an intended foaming to form a sealing element, an intendedsealing function for attachment in the final assembly and the like.

The generation of the first data set describing the target machiningstate can include the storage of at least one machining step in thefirst data set, which is required to transfer the component from itsactual state to the target machining state. The target machining statemay differ from a final machining state.

Panel fabrication may include the fabrication of the removable mountedcomponent in volume production, but the method may still have the steps:

Capturing the component identification of the removable mountedcomponent in volume production;

reading the first data set and detecting the target machining state orat least one machining step;

separating the detachably mounted component from the series productionand feeding the detachably mounted component to a machining station,wherein in the machining station the at least one machining step and/ora further machining step is carried out to bring the detachably mountedcomponent closer to the target machining state; and

after the machining step has been carried out, reintegration of thedetachably mounted component into the series production.

If the production of the switch cabinet comprises the production of thedetachably mounted component in series production, wherein thedetachably mounted component can pass through several machiningstations, the component identification of the detachably mountedcomponent can be read out at at least one machining station, the firstdata set assigned to the component identification can be recorded,taking into account the first data set and a CAD construction possiblycontained therein, at least one machining step can be carried out inorder to at least approximate the component to the target machiningstate. An updated machining state can be stored in the first data setand the first data set for remote access.

Thus, the method can also include a documentation of performed machiningsteps in the first data set. The first data set can thus reflect thecurrent machining state of the component in question during theproduction of the component between different machining stations. Thisensures that the first data set can be used to monitor the expectedmachining success of the removably mounted component at any time duringproduction, i.e. an approximation to the target machining state.

The first data set may contain mechanical design information of a holepattern for machining the detachably mounted component, such as amounting plate or a flat panel, for example for a switchgear to beproduced on the mounting plate or for the mounting of a switch cabinetair conditioner in or on a flat panel. The design information can beprovided as CAD data, for example. Manufacturing the removable mountedcomponent may involve mechanical machining of the removable mountedcomponent, including lasers, to produce the hole pattern. For example,the assembled component may be a mounting plate that has a hole patternto form the electrical switchgear on the mounting plate. The mountedcomponent can be, for example, a side wall of the switchgear cabinetinto which a hole pattern is inserted in order to mount a switchgearcabinet air conditioning unit on or in the side wall of the switchgearcabinet and to connect it fluidically with the interior of theswitchgear cabinet.

Furthermore, the method can include the generation of a second data set,which is assigned to the switch cabinet via the switch cabinetidentification and stored for remote access, whereby the second data setincludes a circuit diagram of a switchgear to be created or alreadycreated in the switch cabinet. The second data set can be generated fromthe first data set, for example by enriching the data concerning thecircuit diagram.

The unique identification of the control cabinet makes it possible toestablish a clear assignment between a control cabinet and a switchgearto be created or already created in the control cabinet. Before theswitchgear is created in the switchgear cabinet, the switchgear to becreated in the “empty” switchgear cabinet can thus already be assignedto the switchgear to be created in it, at least in the form of a circuitdiagram describing the switchgear and, if necessary, furtherinformation, such as a component parts list. This considerablysimplifies the logistics of the switchgear manufacturer, who has tosubject the switchgear cabinet to various post-processing operations atdifferent machining stations of his production line in order tomanufacture the switchgear.

Since the electrical switchgear is permanently assigned to the switchcabinet in which it is installed after its construction, due to the highdegree of individualization of the switch cabinet, a clearidentification of the switchgear can be made by means of the switchcabinet identification of the switch cabinet in which it is installed.

For example, a second data set assigned to the switch cabinetidentification can be generated, which contains a circuit diagram of theswitchgear accommodated in the switch cabinet. Alternatively, the seconddata set can contain further information concerning the switchgear, forexample a component parts list, a maintenance plan or similar. This alsomakes it possible that in the event of a change to the switchgear or inthe event of maintenance, appropriate measures, which may also include acorresponding adaptation of the circuit diagram, are documented in thesecond data set and stored for remote access. It is therefore no longernecessary to keep a paper circuit diagram and a paper maintenancehistory. Due to the fixed assignment between switch cabinet labeling andswitchgear, confusion between the circuit diagram and the actualswitchgear and the loss of the circuit diagram, which is quite possiblewith paper documentation, is also prevented. The second data set can beobtained from the first data set by modifying, in particular byenriching the first data set.

The method can also include changing the circuit diagram according to arecorded change of the switchgear and updating the second data set sothat the updated second data set contains the modified circuit diagram.The recording of a change to a switchgear can be done manually via ahuman-machine interface or, for example, partially automated, forexample with optical or component recognition.

In the case of semi-automated detection, it may be provided that allcomponents of the electrical switchgear, or at least some of theelectrical components of the switchgear, have individual componentidentification. This marking should preferably be contactless andpreferably optically readable and can be provided in the form of a QRcode, for example, but is not limited to QR codes. With the help of sucha detection, e.g. optical detection, it can be determined whichcomponents the switchgear has, at least to the extent that thecomponents are provided with a component identification. The second dataset may, for example, contain a list of components of the switchgearwhich can be updated on the basis of the recorded components if, forexample, a change in the component population of the switchgear occursduring a revision of the switchgear or during maintenance. For example,it may be intended that the recording of a change in the switchgearincludes the recording of the component identifications of thecomponents of the electrical switchgear, whereby a change in thecomponent equipment of the electrical switchgear can be recorded bycomparing the recorded component identifications with the circuitdiagram.

With the help of the component identification, however, a recording ofthe relative arrangement of the components to each other is basicallyalso possible beyond the provision of a parts list. For this purpose, itmay be provided that the method comprises the at least partial opticalor electromagnetic detection of an interior of the switchgear cabinet,in particular of a mounting side of a mounting plate on which theelectrical switchgear is arranged, wherein the detection comprises thedetection of at least one component identification of at least onecomponent of the switchgear, wherein the detection comprises, inaddition to the detection of the component identification, further thedetection of a location information of the component relative to atleast one further component of the switchgear with a further componentidentification. Furthermore, the acquisition can include the acquisitionof a correct positioning of at least one component of the switchgear.This can include the alignment of a 2D or 3D layout with the acquiredlocation information. The acquisition can also include the acquisitionof the completeness of the electrical switchgear. A component list canbe compared with the captured components.

The electrical components of the switchgear with the componentidentification can also include the wiring of the electrical switchgear.For example, a wire routed between a first and a second component andelectrically connecting them may have a component identification at itsopposite ends, with which it is connected to the first component or tothe second component, so that the method can also be used to compare thewiring of the components and, if necessary, to compare the detectedwiring with a wiring stored in a circuit diagram and, if necessary, todocument a deviation or change. The circuit diagram can in turn bestored as a data set for remote access via the switch cabinetidentification or also via a component identification of the mountingplate on which the switchgear described by the circuit diagram isformed.

The method can further include the creation of an electrical switchgearin the switch cabinet, starting from a CAD design of the switchgear,which is assigned to the switch cabinet via the switch cabinetidentification, whereby data sheet information of electrical componentsof the electrical switchgear is linked with information about theirinterconnection in the electrical switchgear and is stored in a centralarchive database under the switch cabinet identification in at least onedata set.

The method can also include the technical approve of the switchgear,whereby test and approval information of the switchgear is added to theat least one data set. If the required test and approval information iscomplete, a commissioning release for the switchgear can be triggered.The switchgear can then be commissioned, whereby commissioninginformation of the switchgear is added to the at least one data set,preferably via a human-machine interface.

The switchgear cabinet identification can thus be used during thevarious stages of the construction of a switchgear and even alreadyduring the manufacture of the switchgear cabinet that will house theswitchgear in the future to allocate the measures required with theconstruction and commissioning of the switchgear to each other. Inprinciple, it is possible to produce a complete design of the switchgearand the switchgear cabinet containing it, including information on thetechnical acceptance of the switchgear and the commissioning of theswitchgear, before the switchgear cabinet is manufactured and before theswitchgear is built, using suitable design tools such as MCAD and ECADtools. This complete design of the switchgear can be assigned to aspecific switchgear cabinet and its components by means of the uniqueswitchgear cabinet identification and the component identificationslinked to it, so that at each stage of the switchgear cabinet orswitchgear, from manufacture through operation to disposal, theinformation required in each case from the bundle of informationassigned to the identifications can be retrieved by the respectiveshareholder.

In this way, the method can continue to include the performance ofmaintenance or repair of the switchgear after commissioning of theswitchgear as well as the addition of maintenance information or repairinformation to at least one data set stored in the archive database. Themethod can also include the execution of a switchgear repair, whereby athree-dimensional CAD design of the switchgear is used.

The triggering of a commissioning release can include the connection ofat least one energy source to the switchgear and/or at least oneconnection from the switchgear cabinet to the switchgear to activate it.If commissioning is carried out after the switchgear has been givencommissioning release, the at least one data set in the archive databasecan be further enriched with supplementary commissioning information ofthe electrical switchgear.

It is thus possible to create a documentation already at the time of themanufacturing of the electrical switchgear, which offers a higher depthof information than a usual switchgear cabinet folder in paper form, bynot only reproducing the components installed in the switchgear, butalso implementing their data sheet information in the documentation. Inaddition, function information linked to this can provide informationabout the function of a specific electrical component of the switchgearin its respective installation situation in the concrete electricalswitchgear, for example the control of a frequency converter for athree-phase motor of a pump or similar.

All information concerning the switchgear can be carried along anddynamically updated over the entire product life cycle of the switchgearand the switch cabinet in which the switchgear is installed.

The method can also include the reading of the switchgear cabinetidentification and the provision of a CAD design of an electricalswitchgear to be formed in the switchgear cabinet, whereby the CADdesign is assigned to the switchgear cabinet via the switchgear cabinetidentification. The method can also include the import of the CAD designinto a computer-aided assistance unit. The computer-aided assistanceunit can be set up to fragment the CAD design. The CAD design can bebroken down into individual assembly steps that build on each other inorder to determine an efficient assembly step sequence of the electricalswitchgear, for example on a mounting plate of the switchgear cabinet.

The assembly step sequence can include at least two consecutive wiringsteps of two components of the electrical switchgear or at least twoconsecutive component positioning steps of two components of theelectrical switchgear.

The computer-aided assistance unit can be set up to break down the CADdesign, which has at least a three-dimensional layout and a parts listof the individual electrical components of the electrical switchgear,into individual assembly steps that build on each other.

The computer-aided assistance unit can have a tolerance evaluationdevice for step sequence control, with the help of whichsensor-registered actual installation positions of mounted components ofthe switchgear can be compared with target specifications according tothe circuit diagram, taking into account specified installationtolerances. The sensoric acquisition of the actual installationpositions can be done optically and with the help of image processing.For easier recognition of the components by the computer-aidedassistance unit, the components of the electrical switchgear can eachhave a component identification, so that each component marked with thecomponent identification can be clearly distinguished from the othercomponents.

Furthermore, the method can also include the visualization of a manuallyexecutable assembly step of the assembly step sequence by a display unitinstalled at an assembly site, which outputs image and/or textinformation as assembly instructions. The method may further include theexecution of the manually executable assembly step according to thedisplayed image and/or text information. Furthermore, the method mayinclude the acknowledgement of the completed assembly step via an inputunit installed at the assembly site and the logging of the completion ofthe assembly step as well as the retrieval of a next assembly step ofthe assembly step sequence. At the latest after completion of allassembly steps of the assembly step sequence, a protocol data setassigned to the switch cabinet identification can be generated andstored for remote access, which has a protocol of the completed assemblysteps of the assembly step sequence.

Furthermore, the method can include the configuration of an electricalswitchgear for the switch cabinet, which is at least composed of severalelectrical and/or electronic components. The configuration may includethe creation of an electrical circuit diagram of the electricalswitchgear or, if already existing, the provision of the electricalcircuit diagram.

Furthermore, the method may include the conversion of the electricalcircuit diagram into a three-dimensional assembly layout of theswitchgear cabinet interior, in particular into a three-dimensionalmounting plate layout representing an arrangement of the electricaland/or electronic components on a mounting plate of the switchgearcabinet.

Furthermore, the method can comprise the modification of thethree-dimensional layout to generate at least one alternativethree-dimensional layout, wherein a quality function is applied whichtakes an extremum if the electrical switchgear is optimized with respectto a physical parameter, preferably with respect to a packing density ofthe electrical and/or electronic components of the switchgear, a thermalload of the switchgear, an electrical energy consumption of theswitchgear, at least one cable length for the wiring of the electricaland/or electronic components of the switchgear.

Furthermore, the method may include the generation of a third data setrepresenting the alternative three-dimensional layout, the assignment ofthe switchgear cabinet identification to the third data set and thestorage of the third data set for remote access.

For the modification of the created three-dimensional layout into thealternative three-dimensional layout, a modification algorithm can beapplied, which applies the quality function. The quality functionrepresents the goal, which is to be achieved with the modification, forexample the increase of the space utilization ratio of the electricalswitchgear. If several goals are to be achieved simultaneously,compromises in the sense of a lowest common denominator can be found incase of conflicting goals. Instead of the quality function, it is alsopossible to specify boundary conditions that must be preciselymaintained, for example a maximum temperature or maximum energyconsumption of the electrical switchgear.

When disassembling and removing the at least one component from at leastone switchgear cabinet, at least two components designed as identicalparts can be disassembled and removed, which differ in at least onefeature after machining.

The component identifications of the at least two components designed asidentical parts may furthermore each be assigned to a unique anddifferent local feature comprising an assembly position of therespective component on the switch cabinet, the re-assignment of themachined components further comprising an assignment of the machinedcomponents to their respective assembly position on the switch cabinet.

During the disassembly and removal of the component from therespectively associated cabinet, at least two identical or nearlyidentical components of different cabinets can be disassembled andremoved.

When machining the identical or almost identical components, thecomponents can be processed differently, so that the components differin at least one feature after machining.

The reading of at least one of the characteristics may involve thereading of an optically readable identification, in particular a barcodeor a multidimensional code, such as a QR code, and/or the reading of anelectromagnetic, inductive or capacitive readable identification, inparticular an RFID transponder.

Providing of the at least one switchgear cabinet may include themanufacture of the switchgear cabinet, at least one of the componentsbeing a shaped sheet metal part formed from a steel sheet blank byshaping and, if necessary, machining and/or further sheet metal workingmeasures and, if necessary, subsequent painting. Before painting, thesheet metal shaped part may be provided with the machine-readableidentification which is overpainted during the painting of the sheetmetal shaped part so that the surface of the sheet metal shaped part andthe component identification are covered with an uninterrupted paintlayer.

Providing of the at least one switchgear cabinet may include themanufacture of the switchgear cabinet, at least one of the componentsbeing a formed sheet metal part which is formed from a steel sheet blankby shaping and, if necessary, machining measures, the machine-readableidentification being printed on the formed sheet metal part with a colorwhich is visible or invisible in the optical wavelength range.

Providing of the at least one switchgear cabinet can comprise themanufacture of the switchgear cabinet, wherein at least one of thecomponents is a sheet metal shaped part which is formed from a steelsheet blank by shaping and optionally machining measures and optionallya subsequent lacquering, wherein a phase change material or a matrix ofindividual fields of a phase change material is applied to the sheetmetal shaped part or optionally to the lacquering and optionallylacquered over with the lacquering of the sheet metal shaped part,wherein the phase change material or the matrix is described by thermaland/or electrical action to form the identification with the at leastone feature.

Furthermore, an accessory component can be mounted on or in the at leastone switch cabinet, which has a unique accessory identification which isassigned to the switch cabinet identification, wherein the accessoryidentification is assigned to the switch cabinet identification before,after or during the mounting of the accessory component on or in theswitch cabinet. The accessory identification can be assigned a data setcontaining installation information of the accessory component, e.g. aninstallation location of the accessory identification in the switchcabinet.

The method may include providing of at least two identical components tobe mounted in or on the switch cabinet, each with a componentidentification, whereby the component identifications of the identicalcomponents are assigned an individual location feature fordifferentiation from one another when the respective component ismounted in or on the switch cabinet.

The method can comprise the generation of a fourth data set which isassigned to the switch cabinet via the switch cabinet identification,the data set comprising information concerning the use of the switchcabinet, the maintenance of the switchgear accommodated in the switchcabinet and/or the intended disposal of the switch cabinet, which istaken during manufacture from the planning data stored in the databaseand stored in the identifiers, and/or which is added to the identifiersor updated in them as required over the life cycle of the switchcabinet.

Providing can comprise the provision of a switch cabinet with a frameand at least one flat panel, whereby the frame and/or the flat panel hasan electrical contact. The electrical contact can have a protectivecover with a non-volatile memory in which at least one data set relatingto the frame or flat panel having the electrical contact is stored,preferably a component identification which uniquely identifies theframe or flat panel having the electrical contact. The protective covermay have a part which is firmly connected to the electrical contact anda part which is detachable from the electrical contact, the firmlyconnected part having the non-volatile memory. The part firmly connectedto the electrical contact may be connected to the part detachable fromthe electrical contact via a predetermined breaking point.

Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the descriptionprovided herein. The description and specific examples in this summaryare intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended tolimit the scope of the present disclosure.

DRAWINGS

The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only ofselected embodiments and not all possible implementations, and are notintended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

Further details of the invention are explained using the figures below.Therein:

FIG. 1 schematically shows the production of a switch cabinet by anelectrical cabinet manufacturer;

FIG. 2 schematically shows the machining of a removable part mounted onan switch cabinet at a switchgear manufacturer;

FIG. 3 shows the maintenance of electrical switchgear at the end user;

FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of a component identification; and

FIG. 5 shows the assembly and use of the embodiment as shown in FIG. 4.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Example embodiments will now be described more fully with reference tothe accompanying drawings.

FIGS. 1 to 3 show an exemplary embodiment of a method according to theinvention for the machining of at least one switchgear cabinet 200. FIG.1 shows the manufacture of the switchgear cabinet by the switchgearcabinet builder. This includes the raw production of a flat panel 100,for example a switch cabinet side wall, a switch cabinet door, or amounting plate. The flat panel 100 has a component identification 101,by which the flat panel 100 can be clearly identified.

It is possible that the component identification 101 is arranged on theflat panel 100 as early as possible and thus already during theunfinished production of the flat panel 100 gives the switch cabinetmanufacturer the possibility to store the manufacturing informationindividually concerning the flat panel via a data set linked to thecomponent identification 101. Thus, for example, it is possible that adata set is uniquely assigned via the component identification 101,which contains processing information during the manufacturing processof the flat panel 100, for example a mounting plate. This can include,for example, the insertion of cut-outs in the mounting plate alreadyduring the raw production of the mounting plate. If the flat panel 100is to become a side panel for a switch cabinet housing 200, it ispossible that already after the production of the bent sheet metal blankthe component identification 101 is applied to the bent sheet metalblank. The data set linked via the component identification 101 cancontain information regarding the further finishing of the sheet metalblank. This may include, for example, the application of a paint finish,a foamed gasket, or the insertion of fixing holes for mounting the flatpanel on the switch cabinet. These machining steps are marked in FIG. 1with the reference numeral 300 and are generally not limited to anyspecific machining steps.

Depending on the nature of the scope of the machining steps 300 withwhich the flat panel blank 100 is to be finished, it is necessary todesign the component identification 101 in a suitable manner. If, forexample, the component identification 101 is to be applied before dipcoating of the flat panel 100, it is necessary that the componentidentification 101 can be recoated or can still be read in a recoatedstate. In the case of an embodiment of the invention, however, it may beprovided that the component identification 101 is provided in the formof a printed QR code which can only be applied after dip coating of theflat panel 100. In this form of the invention, the painting is not oneof the machining steps which can be carried out after the application ofthe component identification 101 and is therefore not a machining step300 which is stored in the data set associated with the componentidentification 101.

With reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, a component identification is presentedwhich can be applied before the flat panel is coated and is thereforestill fully functional even when overcoated.

After the flat panel 100 with the part identification 101 has passedthrough the machining steps 300, it can be assigned to a specificcontrol cabinet 200 via a control cabinet identification 201 on thecontrol cabinet 200. If the part 100 is a standard series part, theassignment can be done after the flat panel 100 has been completed,i.e., after the flat panel 100 has passed all machining steps 300. Ifthe part 100 is a part that has undergone individual machining, it maybe useful to assign the part 100 to a specific control cabinet 200 or aspecific control cabinet identification 201 via its part identification101 already during its creation, especially before itsindividualization, so that a clear assignment between the flat panel 100and the later control cabinet 200 is already established when the flatpanel 100 is created.

It is thus possible, for example, to assign a data set to the controlcabinet label 201, which contains project data of the finished controlcabinet with the switchgear incorporated therein, for example MCAD data,which, among other things, relate to the post-processing of at least onedetachably mounted component 100. In this case, it is useful to link theMCAD data concerning the component 100 to a specific component 100 viathe component identification 101 already during the manufacturingprocess of the component 100.

The MCAD part number 201 itself can be located on a detachably mountedpart of the cabinet 200, e.g., on a door 203, where the correspondingpart 203, in this case a door, can still have a part number 201 as wellas the MCAD part number 201.

The component 201 turns the component, in this case the door 203, whichhas the switch cabinet identification 201, into a master component, towhich at least all removable components of the switch cabinet 200 with acomponent identification 101 are assigned by assigning the switchcabinet identification 201 to at least one component identification 101of a component 100. All detachably mounted components, in particular allflat panels, can have a component identification 101, regardless ofwhether the respective detachably mounted component 100 undergoesindividual post-processing or whether it is still a standard seriesproduct after completion of the switch cabinet with the switchgearmounted.

The frame 202 of the switchgear cabinet 200 is usually not subjected toany reworking and is a standardized component at least with regard toits geometry, subject to the fact that switchgear cabinets withdifferent external dimensions and correspondingly with switchgearcabinet frames of different sizes exist.

In principle, the frame 202 can also have a component identification101, which is assigned to the switch cabinet identification 201, whichmay be desired, for example, for order picking work, in order to enablea clear traceability of the frame 202 as well. It is also conceivable,for example, that the control cabinet identification 201 is formed onframe 202. After completion of the control cabinet 200, a data set canbe stored via the control cabinet label 201, which reflects the productspecification of the finished control cabinet 200, including, ifnecessary, individual machining of the cabinet by the manufacturer.

FIG. 2 illustrates the situation for the panel builder who receives fromthe panel builder the control cabinet 200 described with reference toFIG. 1. As has already been described with reference to FIG. 1, theenclosure supplied to the panel builder by the panel builder can be aseries product, or a 200 panel enclosure which, according to projectdata supplied to the panel builder by the panel builder, already has acertain degree of individualization, e.g. cut-outs in side panels forthe installation of an air conditioning unit or the like.

The panel builder will therefore remove at least the mounting plate 100from the switch cabinet housing 1 to form the switch cabinet 104.Accordingly, in FIG. 2, the detachably mounted component 100 withcomponent identification 101 represents a mounting plate. A machiningstep of the mounting plate 100, after it has been disassembled andremoved from the switchgear housing 200 by the panel builder, is to formopenings 103 in the mounting plate 100 which are necessary for theformation of the switchgear on the mounting plate 100, e.g. for thecable routing or for the air routing of cooling air. However, as alreadydescribed with reference to FIG. 1, the openings 103 can in principlealso be formed at the switchgear cabinet manufacturer's premises, whichis achieved precisely by the data continuity between trades, which ismade possible precisely by the unambiguous component and switchgearcabinet identification of the type specified in the invention.

A further processing step 302 comprises the equipping of the mountingplate 100 with electrical and/or electronic components 105 and thewiring of the components to each other. Corresponding parts lists, acircuit diagram, a wiring diagram and further auxiliary assemblyinformation can in turn be assigned via the component identification101. For example, the panel builder can be supported in the assembly ofthe mounting plate and the wiring of the components by reading in theidentification 101 and retrieving a data set linked to the componentidentification 101, for example with the aid of “Augmented Reality”. Forimproved machine recognition of components 105 on the mounting plate100, components 105 can have a machine-readable component identification106. For example, by reading in the component identification 101, a dataset can be transferred to a human-machine interface which displays acircuit diagram linked to the component identification 101. Reading inthe component identification 106 serves to illustrate to a fitter thecorrect arrangement and wiring of the respective component 106 on themounting plate.

FIG. 3 illustrates the situation for the end user of the electricalswitchgear. There, the switchgear cabinet 200 containing the switchgear104 may be lined up in a row of several switchgear cabinets 200. Theswitchgear 104 on the mounting plate 100 at the switchgearmanufacturer's site as shown in FIG. 2 is located in the middleswitchgear cabinet 200 in the illustration in FIG. 3. The end user ofthe electrical switchgear 104 is particularly interested in ensuring theoperation of the switchgear and the maintenance of the switchgear by thesimplest possible technical means. Here, too, the componentidentification in accordance with the invention can be of assistance.

For example, the end user of the electrical switchgear can read in thecomponent identification 101 during operation of the electricalswitchgear. The operating parameters of the electrical switchgear 104are stored in a data set assigned to the component identification 101.This can include, for example, the retrieval of fault messages or themonitoring of the switchgear operation, for example the output of atleast one energy consumption value.

If the electrical switchgear 104 has a monitoring unit which monitorsthe operation of the electrical switchgear 104 and correspondingoperating parameters are stored in the data set which can be retrievedvia the component identification 101, the user of the electricalswitchgear can retrieve the operating parameters recorded by themonitoring unit via a man-machine interface 400 by reading theidentification 101, for example with the aid of an optical camera moduleof the man-machine interface 400. The corresponding data set can bestored in a cloud, which the human-machine interface accesses. In therepresentation shown in FIG. 3, a circuit diagram 402 of the electricalswitchgear 104 is shown on a display 401 of the man-machine interface400. The data set of the switchgear monitoring device can besuperimposed on the circuit diagram, so that, for example, operationallyrelevant parameters of the individual components of the electricalswitchgear 104 can be displayed in the circuit diagram 402 on thedisplay 401 assigned to corresponding component symbols, whichconsiderably facilitates the maintenance of the electrical switchgear104.

On the inside of the switchgear cabinet door 109 a circuit diagrampocket 108 with a further identification 107 can be arranged. Via theidentification 107 a data set can be deposited analogous to thecomponent identification 101, which shows essential operating parametersof the electrical switchgear 104. Furthermore, the data set can containa circuit diagram, a component parts list, physical operating parametersof the individual components, a maintenance history of the electricalswitchgear and further information, which is usually kept in a classicalpaper circuit diagram folder, as well as additional information, such ascommissioning information of the electrical switchgear.

FIG. 4 shows an exemplary embodiment of a repaintable componentidentification, which is designed as an electrical contact. It featuresa weld-on stud 1 with an external thread 8 and a socket 10. Via thesocket 10, weld-on stud 1 can be welded to a flat panel 100 as shown inFIG. 1 and thus also electrically connected. Welding can be carried outbefore painting the switch cabinet housing or the flat panel. The base10 has an undercut contour 11 on its outer circumference which can beused to form a joining connection between the weld-on stud 1 and theprotective cover 2 also shown.

The protective cover 2 can be designed in the form of a plastic cap, forexample. In deviation from the paint protection caps known from thestate of the art, the protective cover 2 shown has a part 4 at thebottom edge of the protective cover 2 which can be firmly connected tothe electrical contact 1 and a part 5 which can be detached from theelectrical contact 1. The paint protection caps known from the state ofthe art are one-piece. Part 5, which can be detached from electricalcontact 1, can, for example, have an internal thread corresponding tothe external thread 8, via which part 5 can be screwed onto contact 1.However, part 5, which can be detached from electrical contact 1, canalso be designed in the manner of a cap without internal thread, whichis held on the weld-on stud 1 only via its predetermined breaking pointand the firmly connected part 4. Part 4, which is firmly connected tothe weld-on stud 1, may, for example, be joined to contact 1 via theundercut 11 at the base of contact 1.

The firmly connected part 4 has the non-volatile memory 3 for storing acomponent identification. Part 4, which is firmly connected to weld-onstud 1, is connected to part 5, which can be detached from weld-on stud1, via a predetermined breaking point 6. The non-volatile memory 3 is awireless readable memory 3, for example an RFID transponder. An antenna7 of the wirelessly readable memory 3 is located along the outercircumference of the electrical contact 1 when the protective cover 2 isplaced on the contact, for example by joining the fixed part 4 to thesocket 10. As the antenna 7 extends along the outer circumference of thesocket 10, it is not electromagnetically shielded by the weld-on stud 1,which is a metal part. The antenna 7 can be embedded in the firmlyconnected part 4. Accordingly, the material of the firmly connected part4 does not have a significant electromagnetic shielding effect and is,for example, a plastic material.

The protective cover 2 has a cover part 12 which is connected at itsfree edge 9 via a predetermined breaking point 6 to the part 4 of theprotective cover which can be firmly connected to the base 10 of thegrounding bolt.

Since the non-volatile storage tank 3 with at least one data set, e.g. acomponent identification, is located in the part 4 of the protectivecover 2 that can be firmly connected to the electrical contact, thestorage tank 3 remains on the switch cabinet housing when the cover part12 is detached from the fixed part 4 via the predetermined breakingpoint 6 and the cover part 12 is removed. This means that theinformation stored in memory 3 is retained even if, for example, thecover part 12 of the protective cover 2 is unscrewed or released fromthe thread 8 of the electrical contact and removed from the switchcabinet housing to establish an earth contact for equipotential bonding.

FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary manufacturing and application process ofweld-on stud 1. In a first step, weld-on stud 1 can be manufactured byconnecting it to protective cover 2 consisting of the permanentlyconnectable part 4 and the detachable part 5 in one joining step withweld-on stud 1.

Subsequently, the weld-on stud 1 provided with the protective cover 2can be connected to a flat panel 22 of a switch cabinet housing via awelding process. If the protective cover 2 is then removed from theelectrical contact, whereby the weld-on stud 1 is at least partiallyexposed and the non-volatile accumulator 3 remains at the electricalcontact 1, an electrical connection to the switch cabinet housing or theflat panel 22 can be established by contacting the electrical contact 1with a protective conductor 23. The protective conductor 23 may have awire eyelet which is placed on the threaded section 8 of the weld-onstud 1 and locked with a nut 24. For improved illustration, FIG. 5 showsthe farthest right artial representation without the outer casing of thefixed part 4, so that the non-volatile storage device 3 still remainingat the electrical contact 1 after removal of the detachable part 5 isvisible in the fixed part 4, even if in the concrete application it isprotectively accommodated within a plastic casing of the fixed part 4,as shown from the right in the second illustration.

The features of the invention disclosed in the above description, in thedrawings as well as in the claims may be essential for the realizationof the invention either individually or in any combination.

The foregoing description of the embodiments has been provided forpurposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to beexhaustive or to limit the disclosure. Individual elements or featuresof a particular embodiment are generally not limited to that particularembodiment, but, where applicable, are interchangeable and can be usedin a selected embodiment, even if not specifically shown or described.The same may also be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to beregarded as a departure from the disclosure, and all such modificationsare intended to be included within the scope of the disclosure.

1. A method for machining at least one switchgear cabinet, comprising:providing at least one switchgear cabinet which is constructed inseveral parts and comprises at least one removably mounted component;disassembling and removing the removably mounted component from theswitch cabinet; machining the disassembled and removed component andproviding the machined component for reassembly on the associated switchcabinet; and re-assigning the machined component provided for reassemblyto the corresponding control cabinet, wherein the at least one switchcabinet has an individual machine-readable switch cabinet identificationand the at least one removably mounted component has an individualmachine-readable component identification, which are assigned to oneanother, wherein re-assigning of the component to the switch cabinetcomprises machine-reading of the machine-readable identifications andbringing together the component and the switch cabinet which have themutually assigned identifications.
 2. The method according to claim 1,in which providing of the at least one switchgear cabinet comprisesmanufacturing of the switchgear cabinet, wherein during manufacturing ofthe switchgear cabinet the removably mounted component of the switchgearcabinet with the component identification and the at least one furthercomponent of the switchgear cabinet with the switchgear cabinetidentification are manufactured independently of one another and aftertheir manufacture are assigned to one another for the first time byreading in the identifications.
 3. The method according to claim 1, inwhich providing or disassembling and removing of the removably mountedcomponent of the switch cabinet comprises generating a first data setdescribing a target machining state of the component, the first data setbeing assigned to the component via the component identification, andstoring the first data set for remote access.
 4. The method according toclaim 3, wherein generating the first data set describing the targetmachining state comprises storing of at least one machining step in thefirst data set which is required to transfer the component from itsactual state to the target machining state.
 5. The method according toclaim 3, in which manufacturing of the switch cabinet comprises themanufacturing of the removably mounted component in series production,the method further comprising: detecting the component identification ofthe removably mounted component in series production; reading the firstdata set and detecting the target machining state or at least onemachining step; separating the detachably mounted component from theseries production and feeding the detachably mounted component to amachining station, wherein in the machining station the at least onemachining step and/or a further machining step is carried out in orderto bring the detachably mounted component closer to the target machiningstate; and after the machining step has been carried out, reintegratingthe detachably mounted component into series production.
 6. The methodaccording to claim 3, in which manufacturing of the switch cabinetcomprises manufacturing of the removably mounted component in seriesproduction, the removably mounted component passing through a pluralityof machining stations, wherein at at least one machining station thecomponent identification of the detachably mounted component is readout; the first data set assigned to the component identification isrecorded; at least one machining step is performed to bring the partcloser to the target machining state; an updated machining state isstored in the first data set; and the first data set is stored forremote access.
 7. The method according to claim 3, in which the firstdata set comprises mechanical design information of a hole pattern for aswitchgear to be produced in the switchgear cabinet or for the assemblyof a switchgear cabinet air conditioner, preferably MCAD data, whereinthe production of the removably mounted component comprises mechanicalprocessing, including lasering, of the removably mounted component,preferably a mounting plate of the switchgear cabinet, for producing thehole pattern.
 8. The method according to claim 1, which furthercomprises generating a second data set which is assigned to the switchcabinet via the switch cabinet identification and is stored for remoteaccess, wherein the second data set comprises a circuit diagram of aswitchgear to be produced or already produced in the switch cabinet, andwherein the second data set can be obtained from the first data set bymodification, preferably by enrichment of the first data set.
 9. Themethod according to claim 8, which comprises changing the circuitdiagram according to a detected change of the switchgear and updatingthe second data set so that the updated second data set comprises thechanged circuit diagram.
 10. The method according to claim 9, in whichthe detection of a change in the switchgear comprises the detection ofthe component identifications of the components of the electricalswitchgear, wherein a change in a component assembly of the electricalswitchgear is detected by comparing the detected componentidentifications with the circuit diagram.
 11. The method according toclaim 10, which comprises detecting an interior of the switchgearcabinet at least partially optically or electromagnetically, preferablydetecting a mounting side of a mounting plate on which the electricalswitchgear is arranged, wherein detecting comprises detecting of atleast one component identification of at least one component of theswitchgear, the detecting further comprising, in addition to detectingthe component identification, detecting a location information of thecomponent relative to at least one further component of the switchgearwith a further component identification.
 12. The method according toclaim 1, which further comprises: creating an electrical switchgear inthe switchgear cabinet starting from a CAD design of the switchgearwhich is assigned to the switchgear cabinet via the switchgear cabinetidentification, wherein data sheet information of electrical componentsof the electrical switchgear is linked with information on theirinterconnection in the electrical switchgear and is stored in a centralarchive database under the switchgear cabinet identification in at leastone data set, technically approving the switchgear, whereby test andapproval information of the switchgear is added to the at least one dataset, whereby a commissioning release for the switchgear cabinet istriggered if the necessary test and approval information is complete,and commissioning of the switchgear, whereby commissioning informationof the switchgear is added to the at least one data set via ahuman-machine interface.
 13. The method according to claim 1, whichfurther comprises: reading in the switchgear cabinet identification andproviding a CAD construction of an electrical switchgear to be formed inthe switchgear cabinet, the CAD construction being assigned to theswitchgear cabinet via the switchgear cabinet identification, andreading in the CAD construction into a computer-aided assistance unit,fragmenting of the CAD design into individual assembly steps which buildon one another by the computer-aided assistance unit for determining anefficient assembly step sequence, wherein the assembly step sequencecomprises at least two successive wiring steps of in each case twocomponents of the electrical switchgear or at least two successivecomponent positioning steps of in each case two components of theelectrical switchgear.
 14. The method according to claim 13, whichfurther comprises: visualizing a manually executable assembly step ofthe assembly step sequence by a display unit installed at an assemblysite which outputs image and/or text information as assemblyinstructions, performing the manually executable assembly step accordingto the displayed image and/or text information, acknowledging thecompleted assembly step via an input unit installed at the assembly siteand logging the completion of the assembly step and calling up the nextassembly step of the assembly step sequence, wherein, at the latestafter execution of all assembly steps of the assembly step sequence, aprotocol data set assigned to the switch cabinet identification isgenerated and stored for remote access, which has a record of thecompleted assembly steps of the assembly step sequence.
 15. The methodaccording to claim 1, which further comprises the configuration of anelectrical switchgear for the switch cabinet, which is composed at leastof a plurality of electrical and/or electronic components, wherein theconfiguration comprises the steps: preparing an electrical circuitdiagram of the electrical switchgear, converting the electrical circuitdiagram into a three-dimensional assembly layout of the switch cabinetinterior, preferably a three-dimensional mounting plate layoutrepresenting an arrangement of the electrical and/or electroniccomponents on a mounting plate of the switch cabinet, modifying thethree-dimensional layout produced to generate at least one alternativethree-dimensional layout, wherein a quality function is applied whichassumes an extremum if the electrical switchgear is optimized withrespect to a physical parameter, preferably with respect to a packingdensity of the electrical and/or electronic components, a thermal loadon the switchgear, an electrical energy consumption of the switchgear, acable length for wiring the electrical and/or electronic components, andcreating a third data set representing the alternative three-dimensionallayout, assigning the switch cabinet label to the third data set andstoring the third data set for remote access.